November 30, 2008

Thankful

We haven't gone home for Thanksgiving for several years, because the drive back to Massachusetts was so horrendous the first year we lived here. This year, we were able to travel on Tuesday and Saturday, so we sailed home in record time with little traffic. For that we were thankful.

Matt's aunt traditionally hosts Thanksgiving on Matt's side of the family, so we decided to keep it simple and stay there for the four nights we were home. It was a good decision. There was very good food and drink, including freshly baked pies and cookies, fresh cranberry and champaign cocktails, Mexican beer, Italian sausages, turkey, sweet potatoes, mashed potatoes, and all that good stuff. His aunt and uncle were wonderful hosts, and everybody was able to relax in each other's company. There were babies to ogle over. Games to play. Music to enjoy. For all of this, we were very thankful.

I found a little time to knit, which fascinates our nieces. A few hours to knit helped shed some stress before heading into my two final weeks of this semester.

We enjoyed time outside. Our puppy played in snow for the first time in Ontario, burying her nose in snow piles. Matt played disc golf at a local park with his cousin and brother-in-law. I took a long walk down muddy dirt roads with my oldest niece, talking about our camping adventures along the way.

We also spent a few hours with my mom's family. My grandma, despite her advanced memory loss, still lights up when I tell her again that Matt is my husband. She said, "Oh, you married him? I always thought he was..." and then after watching his face for a minute, "...so calm and kind". For him, his family, and my family, I am very very thankful.

Unfortunately, our adolescent pooch did not relax as we'd hoped. Long days in the car, food laid out, little dogs to harass, and little girls who wanted to play with our "bad puppy" was a bit too much for her right now. She spent most of her time outside, which she enjoys, or inside on a leash learning to be a good girl. During her time outside, we discovered that when rabbits and dogs were nearby, she was strong and crafty enough to break free from backyard fences and outdoor leads that have easily contained other dogs. In all instances, she returned very quickly. For her return to us time and again, we are very thankful.

After another long day of travel yesterday, she, like us, is thankful to be out of the car and home safe again. There is a lot of post-Thanksgiving relaxing going on over here today. Hope you are relaxing too.

It was good to see you two. You should visit sometime in the summer when the weather is more discgolf-friendly! Here's a link to your local disc golf course directory if you're looking for more places to take Kaia walking.